DISCLAIMER: All publicly recognisable characters and property of Stargate SG-1 belong to MGM/UA, World Gekko Corp. and Double Secret Productions. This fan fiction was created solely for entertainment purposes and no money was made from it. Also, no copyright or trademark infringement was intended. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author. Any other characters, the storyline and the actual story are the property of the author. Not to be archived without permission of the author(s).
Chapter 5: Snowfall
'Damn...ouch...shit...'
Jack didn't know which was worse...the considerable armload of Daniel sprawled across his chest or the cold bite of wet snow as it melted into his clothes...
'The armload...definitely the armload...Geez, Daniel, you're heavier than you look...'
Jack tried to move around, realizing he was effectively pinned down. Their combined weight had pushed them into the deep snow and at the rate it was still falling they would be buried in it if they didn't get moving...
Jack tried to reach around to Daniel's face, laying heavily against his shoulder...found it an impossible move...
"Shit, big guy...we have got to go..."
Amazingly the words brought an answering moan...and a hitch of breath as Daniel moved slightly...
Hands slipped around Jack's shoulders, ruffling through his hair...
"Jack?"
Jack couldn't help but laugh. "You were expecting someone else?"
Daniel shook his head, groaning at the movement, but laughing gently. "Guess not...Help me up?"
Daniel moved his legs off Jack, hands sinking into the snow as he tried to push up, nearly throwing him down again. With the alleviation of the weight on his chest, Jack pushed himself up, catching and holding Daniel while the younger man fought to clear his head.
"What the hell happened, Jack?"
Jack looked back toward the cliff, a vast black hole against the snow-covered ground around them. The big Explorer was gone...only a splintered tree trunk remained...even the tracks of its descent from the road had disappeared beneath fresh snow.
"I think the rental company's going to think twice before letting me have another car."
Jack could see Daniel nodding, a shadow against shadows, snow flaking off his bare head in big globs. "You up to getting out of here? If we can get to the road we can hoof it to the cabin in a couple hours." Jack stood up, head swimming a bit but quickly settling down.
Daniel groaned a little, raising a hand to Jack's outstretched one. Jack pulled gently, catching and holding Daniel while the younger man swayed. Daniel had been knocked unconscious twice in the past few hours and Jack knew concussion was more than a possibility, but there was no choice. The nearest town was six miles back...barely more than a post office stop for the sparsely scattered ranchers, loggers and vacationers. The cabin was closer, had the food Jack's uncle had laid in for him, and a telephone. It was their best chance and, in Jack's opinion, they had no choice but to take it.
Daniel was standing on his own now, breathing shallowly but steady enough.
"You up for this?"
Daniel laughed derisively. "Aren't I always?"
Jack was a little shaken by the tone, flat...nearly emotionless in its statement of simple fact. He felt a new twist in his gut, a return of his earlier resolve to get things between him and Daniel back to the 'good' they'd always known.
"Yeah, Daniel...you always are..." Jack put as much conviction as he possessed into the words.
Even the darkness couldn't hide the quick ducking of Daniel's head, the attempt to hide an expression Jack could only guess at...could only hope to decipher if he did see it. After three years Jack still had trouble with 'reading' Daniel, only by seeing Daniel's eyes did he stand a chance...a fact Daniel was well aware of.
Jack led the way upward, he knew if they could make their way back to the road he could find the cabin easily...even in the snow and darkness. Jack tried to pace Daniel, noting the limping gait and soft breathy moan as Daniel tried to place his feet carefully in the deep snow. It was slow going...would have been even if both of them had been one hundred percent...and Jack knew all too well neither of them was anywhere near that estimate. The rough incline was torturous, slipping back for nearly every step forward. Jack soon fell into the pattern of using the dense brush as an anchor, pulling forward and bracing, reaching back to bring Daniel up to him...then bracing to do it again.
By the time they reached the road they were covered in sweat beneath their clothes, panting from the exertion and more than ready for a break, but Daniel said "Which way?" in a tone that told Jack stopping was not an option...
Jack understood that about Daniel...the younger man could go on indefinitely, as long as he didn't stop to think about what it took out of him to keep going. Daniel could keep himself going for days at a time if the situation was dire enough...or intriguing enough...as long as he didn't stop. Little things like food, sleep, his health went out the window and too often left Daniel running on empty.
'But right now he's so far below empty he's sucking fumes...'
Jack knew better than to fight the tone or the man behind it...and started walking.